Cheap and Chic of the Week: Starter Home

I know, I know typically I do “Cheap and Chic of the Week” and scour the internet for the best deals of the week, but this week I wanted to post on recent college graduate Lauren McGrath’s first apartment which was featured in this month’s issue of Traditional Home. Lauren’s apartment is a perfect example of how you can make a chic space, while spending very little money–cheap and chic.

The most expensive piece in the apartment is the Odette sofette from Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, otherwise the rest of the furniture are family pieces, discount store bought, or Craigslist finds. The cane chair was found on Craigslist, and then re-upholstered in a chic discount fabric.

This teeny Brooklyn apartment has an amazing outdoor space, which was the selling point for Lauren. The curtains are from Ikea, and the dresser is a family piece that her grandparents gave to her parents when they got married.

These shelves are from Ikea, and she painted the backs of them so that her objet would stand out. My favorite part is that she took simple, white, ceramic pottery and spray painted it with mercury glass for an eye-catching look. Don’t you just love a good DIY project? Also, I must remind everyone what a difference fresh cut flowers make in a small space. Notice the vases filled with flowers in Lauren’s apartment–they add color and life to her apartment.

Here Lauren created a vanity out of a street find, a damaged mirror from Anthropologie (cheap!), and a fabulous lucite stool. I love Lauren’s mix of old and new, purchased and inherited. People like Lauren, and myself, are lucky to have design saavy mothers with basements full of pieces we can “borrow”–but for those of you who don’t, ebay, Craigslist, and the street can be great places to find some more traditional and “loved” pieces into your apartment.